USA > Idaho > History of Idaho, the gem of the mountains, Volume III > Part 41
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William L. Wills has become an expert cook and housekeeper and manages the affairs of the home, while Charles A. Wills has charge of the horticultural inter- ests. He is also fond of hunting and fishing, as was his father before him, and when leisure permits he indulges his love of those sports.
S. C. SCISM.
With the substantial development and improvement of Canyon county, S. C. Scism has been closely associated, having converted raw land covered with sage- brush into productive fields that annually yield large crops of alfalfa and wheat. Mr. Scism is a native of Missouri, born August 23, 1854. His parents were Wil- liam and Lucinda (McPheeters) Scism, hoth of whom were natives of Tennessee. In 1846 they removed to Missouri, hecoming early settlers of that state at a time when conditions were very crude and many hardships and privations incident to pioneer life must be endured. They lived to witness remarkable changes there, both pass- ing away in Missouri.
S. C. Scism acquired a meager education in his native state, as educational opportunities were crude there prior to the Civil war, while after the war the state was in so impoverished a condition that it took some time before the schools could be developed along modern lines. Reared to the occupation of farming, S. C. Scism became identified with agricultural interests in Missouri and was thus engaged until he reached the age of forty-eight years, when in 1902 he came to Idaho, settling first in the Deer Flat district of Canyon county, south of Nampa. There he pur- chased one hundred and sixty acres of land, for which he paid twenty-five hundred dollars. Afterward he sold twenty-seven acres of this to the government reclama- tion service for the Deer Flat reservoir for twenty-seven hundred dollars. In Janu- ary, 1904, he and his son, J. S. Scism, hought one hundred and sixty acres a mile and a half south of their first location, for which they paid five hundred and fifty dollars. It was then covered with the native growth of sagebrush and it seemed that nothing could make it a productive tract, but today it is divided into fine fields of growing wheat and alfalfa, the place heing all under irrigation. Already Mr. Scism has been offered forty thousand dollars for this property. He sold the
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remainder of his first farm-a tract of one hundred and thirty-three acres-for twenty-eight thousand six hundred dollars in the fall of 1918.
In 1876 Mr. Scism was married to Miss Harriet M. Springfield, a native of Georgia, and they became the parents of five children: Eva, the wife of W. F. Tiller and the mother of one daughter and seven sons; Zilla, who is the wife of A. D. Amick, and has one daughter; John S., who married Lilly Douglas and has one son, Ernest, now eleven years of age; Mamie, the wife of Fred L. Diggs and the mother of one daughter; and Merta, who is the wife of G. C. Grass and has two daughters. The only son, John S. Scism, resides close to his father's farm, where he has one hundred and twenty acres of land, and he also has a stock ranch of one hundred and sixty acres in Long Valley which he can irrigate with free water if he so desires. Upon that place he has one hundred and thirty head of cattle. When he came to Idaho in 1902 he had less than two hundred dollars, but today is easily rated at thirty-five thousand dollars.
S. C. Scism makes his home in what is called the Scism school district, named in his honor. When he first came to this district there were but seven children residing within its borders, while the school attendance today is eighty pupils and the school building is one of the most artistic in the state for its size. Mr. Scism is not only a stalwart champion of the cause of education but of all progressive movements which have to do with the upbuilding of this district and he has borne his part in the reclamation of the wild land and its conversion to uses of civiliza- tion. His has been an active life, in which enterprise and diligence have brought him substantial results.
JAMES ALBERT WILLS.
James Albert Wills is the proprietor of the Sunny Slope Fruit Farm, com- prising fifty acres of land two and a half miles south of Emmett, on the slope south of the town, where he has resided continuously during the past thirteen years. He was born in Carroll county, Illinois, on the 18th of February, 1864, and is the youngest of three Wills brothers who are prominent orchardists living south of Emmett. He was a lad of fourteen years when his parents removed from Illinois to Iowa and remained in the latter state until 1887, when he made his way to Box- bute county, Nebraska, where he proved up a homestead. After a residence of nine years in Nebraska he went in 1896 to Sheridan, Wyoming, where for twelve years he conducted a stock ranch. In the fall of 1907 he came to Idaho in company with his wife and his older brother, Charles A. Wills, who is now his near neigh- bor. The two brothers purchased one hundred and thirty acres of land but have since sold fifty acres thereof. The remaining eighty-acre tract is divided into two distinct fruit farms, one comprising thirty acres and the other fifty acres, both of which are splendidly improved. The thirty-acre property belongs to Charles
A. Wills, while the place of fifty acres is in possession of James A. Wills. The lat- ter has twenty acres of his land in orchards and his trees produce almost every variety of fruit grown in Idaho, including apples, peaches, prunes and sweet cher- ries. The place is known as the Sunny Slope Fruit Farm and the many excellent improvements thereon include a handsome two-story brick residence, which he erected the first year after coming to this state. He is a director of the Emmett Fruit Growers Union and is widely recognized as a prominent and successful horti- culturist of the community.
On the 18th of November, 1891, while living in Nebraska, Mr. Wills was united in marriage to Miss Ruth Olive Poole, who was born in Fremont county, Iowa, February 19, 1872, a daughter of Thomas Jefferson and Marian (Lytle) Poole, resi- dents of Marsland, Nebraska. Mr. and Mrs. Wills have become parents of eight children, as follows: Hazel, who is now the wife of Allen Brown; Pearl, the wife of Robert Smith; Addie, who gave her hand in marriage to Elmer Aston; Anna; Frank W .; Winnie; James Arthur; and Kenneth.
Mr. Wills is a republican in politics but not bitterly partisan, casting his vote with regard for the capability of the candidate rather than his party connection. He has never sought or desired office for himself, having always preferred to con- centrate his efforts and attention upon his private business interests, through the careful conduct of which he has won well deserved prosperity. His wife is a mem-
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ber of the Christian church. The hospitality of their attractive home is greatly enjoyed by their many friends, the number of whom has constantly increased as the circle of their acquaintance has broadened.
RAY H. TRASK.
Ray H. Trask is the president of Trask Brothers, Inc., a concern that operates the Motor Inn Garage and also stage lines to various sections around Boise. Mr. Trask was born in Anoka, Minnesota, August 31, 1888, a son of Rufus I. and Ida M. (Stewart) Trask. The father was born in the state of Maine and was of English descent, while the mother, a native of Minnesota, was of English and Scotch lineage. The father devoted his life to the occupation of a stationary engineer and after living for some time in Anaconda, Montana, removed with his family to Boise in 1907. To Mr. and Mrs. Trask were born six children, three sons and three daughters, all of whom are living with the exception of one son, Frank G. Trask, who died in Boise, September 12, 1916, at the age of thirty-one years. He was the eldest of the family. The surviving brother of Ray H. Trask is Wilbur Earl, now of Buhl, Idaho, but formerly a member of the firm of Trask Brothers, Inc., of Boise.
Ray H. Trask was only a small child when his parents removed from Minnesota to Anaconda, Montana, where he was reared and educated. He was nineteen years of age at the time the family home was established in Boise and through the intervening period he has resided in this city. His entire business training has been along me- chanical lines and on the 8th of July, 1918, he became associated with his brother, Wil- hur Earl, in organizing the firm of Trask Brothers, Inc. He became the president of the company and later he and his wife purchased the interest of his brother, who removed to Jerome, Idaho, Mrs. Trask becoming secretary and treasurer of the con- cern. The stock is all owned by Mr. and Mrs. Trask save one share. The company operates an automobile repair shop in connection with the garage and while Mr. Trask superintends the mechanical end of the business his wife largely has charge of the office work and management. In addition to doing all kinds of repair work on automobiles, whereby he is making the company's name a familiar one to the people of Boise and southwestern Idaho, Mr. Trask is also conducting other lines, for the Trask Brothers auto stages carry the United States mail and light express, as well as passengers, to many points within fifty miles of Boise.
On the 7th of October, 1914, Mr. Trask was married to Miss Alice Bauer, of Boise, a native of Canada. Their sons are: Ray H., who was born July 9, 1915; and Farrell Carmen, born November 19, 1916. Mr. Trask is a member of the Boise Commercial Club and finds his chief recreation in billiards, fishing and hunting. While he is win- ning substantial success in business, his progress is all due to his persistency of pur- pose, his excellent workmanship and his spirit of enterprise and progress.
WILLIAM J. LIBBY.
William J. Libhy, manager of the Municipal Employment Bureau of Boise, where he has resided since 1909, removing to Idaho from the state of Minnesota, accepted his present position on the Ist of January, 1917, and through the intervening period has managed the office most efficiently. He was born in Kandiyohi county, Minne- sota, January 23, 1881, and is of Scotch-Irish, English and French descent. His father, William A. Libby, was also a native of Minnesota, where he followed farm- ing. The mother, who bore the maiden name of Celia Daniels, is now a resident of Ashland, Oregon, but the father died in his native state.
William J. Libby was reared on the old homestead farm and attended the country schools to the age of thirteen years. The following year he entered the preparatory department of the State Normal School at St. Cloud, Minnesota, and when fifteen years of age became a student in the normal department, from which he was graduated in 1901, at the age of twenty years. Taking up the profession of teaching, he was, at the age of twenty-one years, principal of the schools in the town of Hendricks, Minnesota, with three assistants. He taught school in all for four years and was principal at Hendricks throughout the entire period save for
RAY H. TRASK
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three months. In 1909 he came to Boise, Idaho, and established the Libby Employ- ment Office, since which time he has been active in that line. In 1915 the Idaho state legislature passed an act establishing the Boise Municipal Employment Bureau and on the 1st of January, 1917, Mr. Libby was installed as its manager. Thus there came to him recognition of his special training and fitness for the position. He has been most successful in finding employment for those who have needed assistance in this connection and has thus been directly a means of preventing idleness and vagrancy.
On the 16th of July, 1902, Mr. Libby was married to Miss Josephine Davenport, who was also a teacher of Minnesota in young womanhood, having been teacher of the primary department in the school of which Mr. Libby was principal. They have three children: William Lee, Kenneth D. and Gwendolyn, aged sixteen, four- teen and twelve years respectively.
Mr. Libby is a republican in his political views and fraternally is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and the Masonic organization, being a Master Mason. He resides with his family at No. 411 South Third street, in a comfortable home which he has purchased, and for a decade Boise has numbered him among her substantial and worthy citizens.
ALFRED T. JOHNSON.
Alfred T. Johnson, the manager and a director of the Rigby Hardware & Mer- cantile Company and otherwise interested in business affairs of his section, was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, in March, 1879, the son of Thomas and Sarah (Dearns) John- son, both of whom being natives of England.
In 1854 Thomas Johnson left his home in England, came to America and located in Salt Lake City, Utah, for a short time, after which he made a short sojourn in California. Not finding conditions in the west at that time exactly to his liking, he returned to the land of his birth and there married Sarah Dearns. In 1874 he again came to America, bringing his wife, and the two pushed on westward and settled in Utah, establishing their home on a farm near Salt Lake City. There he spent the remainder of his life, giving of his strength and labor to the maintenance of his home and family. His death occurred in November, 1911, after he had reached the ripe old age of eighty-one years; and that of his wife in March, 1891.
Alfred T. Johnson spent the early part of his life in and near Salt Lake City, where he received his early education and training. He felt that his future did not lie in agriculture, hence he left his father's farm to learn the printer's trade and after he mastered the same he spent six years in this work. At the end of that time he en- tered the United States postal service at Salt Lake City as city carrier, retaining this position for eighteen months. In 1903 an opportunity to enter business in Rigby pre- sented itself to Mr. Johnson, hence he located here in that year and helped to organize the Rigby Hardware & Mercantile Company, his services being retained in the admin- istrative department of the company after its organization. This has proved to be a very successful enterprise, and the liberal patronage given it by the citizens of Rigby and Jefferson county as a result of its courteous and generous treatment has enabled it to so extend its business that it now has the largest stock of any department store in this part of the state. No small part of the success of the store has been due to the efforts of Mr. Johnson and as a reward for his efficient services the directors of the enterprise appointed bim manager in 1918, which position he now holds. Be- sides his interest in the Righy Hardware & Mercantile Company, he is also a stock- holder in the Beet Growers Sugar Company of Rigby and he gives a part of his atten- tion to the development of his farm.
In November, 1902, Mr. Johnson was united in marriage to Hessle White, whose death occurred March 18, 1918, after a brief illness. To Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have been born four children, as follow: Mavis, Dearns W., Bradley W., and Wayne W.
Aside from his business duties, Mr. Johnson has found time to devote to the affairs of his town, having served as a member of the village board a number of years ago and held the office of both village clerk and city clerk at different times. At pres- ent he is a member of the city council. In politics he takes his stand with the demo- cratic party.
Mr. Johnson is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to which-
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his wife also belonged, and to which he gives his most ardent and active support as is shown by the fact that he has served the denomination in official capacity. Since he has lived in Rigby, he has given two years of service to missionary work in England; has for five years served as stake superintendent of the Sunday school, and is now senior president of the one-hundred-and-thirtieth quorum of the seventies. These activities, together with his services in behalf of the public and economic welfare of his town and county determine for him a position of honor among his fellow citizens.
GEORGE COULSON.
George Conlson, who for the past eight years has been one of the leading orchardists of Gem county, owns and conducts a forty-acre fruit farm two and a half miles southeast of Emmett. He was born in Batavia, Illinois, on the 30th of May, 1858, a son of John and Mary (Shelmerdine) Coulson, both of whom were natives of England, in which country they were reared and married. After the birth of two of their children they emigrated to the United States, establishing their home in Batavia, Illinois, where they continned to reside throughout the remainder of their lives. The father was an engineer by profession. Mr. and Mrs. John . Coulson became the parents of eight children, five sons and three danghters, all of whom are yet living, namely: Mrs. Alice Treat, a resident of Webster City, Iowa; Thomas, living in Montana; George, of this review; John C., who makes his home in Montana; William, who resides in Wyoming; Mrs. Sophia Mayer, of Illinois; Henry, who lives in Chicago, Illinois; and Mrs. Ella Brown, a resident of Grand Forks, North Dakota.
George Coulson was the third in order of birth in the family and the first of the children to be born on this side of the Atlantic. He spent the first twenty years of his life in Illinois and in 1878 made his way to Montana, arriving in the territory before the era of railroad building. For a third of a century he resided in the vicinity of Great Falls, Montana, devoting his attention to ranching and the raising of live stock with good success. In 1911 he established his home in Gem county, Idaho, where he has since been engaged in the production of fruit and has become recognized as a leading orchardist. He has employed the most scientific methods in the care of his trees and through the wise management of his horti- cultural interests has won a gratifying annual income.
On the 18th of September, 1889, Mr. Coulson was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Hough, who was born in Essex county, New York, March 2, 1866, a danghter of Joseph L. and Candice (Nye) Hough, also natives of the Empire state. In the maternal line Mrs. Coulson comes of Mayflower ancestry. By her marriage she has become the mother of a daughter, Belle, who was born June 19, 1896, and is a graduate of the Idaho Commercial College of Boise.
Fraternally Mr. Coulson is identified with the Modern Woodmen of America and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, while his wife belongs to the Rebekahs and is also a consistent member of the Methodist church. In their political views both he and his wife are republicans and in the community where they reside enjoy an enviable reputation as people of genuine personal worth whose aid and influence' are ever on the side of right, reform and improvement.
R. H. MILLER.
R. H. Miller, a prominent and successful apiarist of Idaho, was born in Nebraska, April 2, 1880, and has been a resident of Idaho since 1904, arriving here when a young man of twenty-four years. During the succeeding year he worked at his trade in various places in the state and in 1905 he homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres in the Black Canyon district of Canyon county. He afterward sold his homestead and made investment in forty acres in the same district but in a different locality. This land will have water under the second unit of the Black Canyon project.
As the years have passed Mr. Miller has developed important business interests in connection with the bee industry. Associated with him is J. M. 'Stark, a native
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of Clarksville, Michigan; he removed westward to Washington in 1902 and thence came to Middleton, Idaho, in 1905, homesteading in the Black Canyon district. He still owns his homestead of one hundred and sixty acres, situated three and a half miles northeast of Middleton, and he, too, will have water on his land under the second unit of the Black Canyon project. Messrs. Miller & Stark are now exten- sively engaged in bee culture, having twelve hundred colonies located in Canyon and Gem counties, Idaho, and they have fourteen different out yards. They shipped in 1918 about one and a half carloads of comb honey and a like amount of extracted honey. Some of their honey went to Europe and also to various sections of the United States, both east and west. They manufacture most of their own supplies and do all of their extracting in Middleton, where they both live. They furnish em- ployment all the time to four people. The industry is of considerable importance to Middleton, disbursing a large amount of money in the town that would otherwise never reach the people of the community. Both Mr. Miller and Mr. Stark are good business men and conduct their business along the most thoroughly modern and scientific lines. In connection with William Mckibben, they have recently pur- chased twelve hundred colonies, known as the Snake River Apiaries. The year 1919 is the first in connection with the development of this latter enterprise and no doubt each succeeding year will witness its further growth and development. Their various apiaries are located at Ontario and Nyssa, Oregon, and Roswell and Notus, Idaho.
Both Mr. Miller and Mr. Stark live in Middleton and both are married. The former was united in marriage in 1907 to Miss Bertha Plowhead, a daughter of Jacob Plowhead, who was one of ldaho's pioneers and prominent business men, re- siding at Middleton to the time of his demise. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have become the parents of four children: James, nine years of age; Herbert, aged eight; Roberta; and Edith May.
In 1906 Mr. Stark was married to Miss Laura Hunter, of Michigan, whose parents came to ldaho about three years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Stark have four children: Myra, Marjorie, Russell and Zilpha.
Thirteen years have come and gone since Mr. Miller arrived in Idaho and this period has marked his steady progression in business. He saw the possibilities of this section of the country for bee culture and has become a prominent apiarist, his success enabling him to speak with authority upon all questions relative to the raising of bees and the production of honey in this section of the country.
JAMES L. JENSEN.
James L. Jensen is an orchardist whose fine property of sixty acres is known as the Gem Fruit and Dairy Ranch and is situated two miles due south of Emmett. Mr. Jensen is a Dane by descent but was born in Sanpete county, Utah, November 12, 1863. His parents were Lars and Karen Jensen, who came from Denmark to the United States in 1855 as converts to the Mormon faith and at once traveled across the country to Utah. Many members of the family were prominent in the church in that state.
James L. Jensen was reared upon a farm in Sanpete county, Utah, his experiences being those of the farm-bred boy who early devotes his attention to the work of the fields. After reaching man's estate he was married on November 12, 1891, to Miss Fannie Coyner, a daughter of Professor Coyner of the Salt Lake Collegiate Institute and to that marriage was born a daughter, Harriett Frances, who is deceased, as is also the mother. On the 2d of April, 1895, he was married to Miss Ingeborg Mathea Neilson, who was born in Norway and belonged to one of the old families of that country. She passed away October 4, 1900, leaving two daughters: Margaret Irene, who was born April 24, 1896; and Karen Mathea, born July 20, 1898. The two daughters are now young ladies who are at home with their father. Both are grad- uates of the Emmett high school and the elder is a teacher, now teaching for the fourth term. The younger daughter, Karen, is a student in the College of Idaho at Caldwell. On the 14th of October, 1908, Mr. Jensen was again married, this union being with Miss Martha White, whom he wedded at Lima, Ohio. She was born in Allen county, Ohio, February 11, 1859, a daughter of Eli and Eleanor (Huston) White, who were natives of the Buckeye state. Mrs. Jensen was reared and edu- cated in Ohio, being a graduate of the Northwestern Normal University at Ada. She
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was a successful and capable teacher for a number of years in Ohio, Idaho and Utah and her work as a teacher in the last two states was done under the auspices of the Women's Board of Home Missions of the Presbyterian church. While reared in the faith of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Mr. Jensen has become a member of the Presbyterian church and is now one of its elders.
In his political views Mr. Jensen is an earnest republican and for two terms served as justice of the peace in Sanpete county. He came with his family to Idaho in 1911 and purchased his present ranch property two miles south of Emmett, where he is now most successfully engaged in fruit raising, his place being located on the south slope, rendering it largely free from frost. He has fourteen acres of his ranch planted to peaches and his crop of 1919 brought him between four and five thousand dollars. He is also successfully engaged in dairying, having a fine herd of sixteen dairy cows, and this branch of his business is also a gratifying source of income. He raises his own feed for his live stock and he has made his farm a most productive one, while his energy and sound judgment in business affairs have been salient fea- tures of his constantly growing success.
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